Wine Tasting Class Is Good Knowledge For Beer Tasting

Apr172013

If you’re a regular reader here, you may remember a piece I wrote about how attending a wine tasting was a fantastic refresher and teacher to relate to beer tasting.

Well, my friends, I went to another wine tasting event last weekend. And I’m here to share more, again, on how similar the sensory experience execution is. It’s a terrific way to welcome, engage and encourage the education of yourself and others. It also helps build confidence: when you know how to taste one beverage, you can transfer those ideas to another. And another. And then food.

Here’s what I learned this time courtesy of winemakers Kara and Greg, Wooldridge Creek & Warrick Wines.

Fluctuating temperatures are not good for wine. Consistency is best.

White Zinfandel is made with the same grapes as red zin, the juice simply spends more ‘time on the skins’ (picking up color).

What does “Old Vine” mean? It means the vines are old enough to bear fruit.

Trellising grape vines is a recent practice only going back 60+/- years.

Hedonistic is a great gustatory word to use!

In order to be viable business wise (at least in Southern Oregon) a vineyard needs to be at least 50 acres in size.

Tannin’s are natures antioxidants

Grapes are one of the very few agriculture crops that have no GMO influence

In Europe, they drink by region. Drinking by style is very American.

Salivation = heightened senses = better tasting

Claret and Meritage are marketing words, with Meritage being a royalty-paid usage.

I encourage you to go taste beer, wine, spirits, sour cream, cheese, chocolate, broccoli and anything else wherein you get to learn about the food featured. Being a ‘smart’ person means keeping your mind and palate open and sharing with others the knowledge you gather.

Education makes the world go round. I’ll drink a glass of wine to that!